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Thursday, January 28, 2010

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The Everafter

By Amy Huntley

Pub: 2009

249 pages

Synopsis:

Madison Stanton doesn’t know where she is or how she got there. But she does know this—she is dead. And alone, in a vast, dark space. The only company she has in this place are luminescent objects that turn out to be all the things Maddy lost while she was alive.

And soon she discovers that with theses artifacts, she can re-experience—and sometimes even change—moments from her life: Her first kiss. A trip to Disney World. Her sister’s wedding. A disastrous sleepover. In reliving these moments, Maddy learns illuminating and sometimes frightening truths about her life—and death.

The story is told through the different vignettes of Madison going back to the moments when she lost a a particular item. At first it's just to experience being alive and seeing her loved ones but then she realizes she can use these moments to unravel the how ans why of her death.

The format is unusual.

It jumps back and forth from her dead self to times in her life where she can be anywhere in age from an infant to seventeen.The style was choppy and uncomfortable but I kept reading and got into the flow. I liked Maddy and felt compelled to go along for the ride, wanting fo find out more about her and how her life ended.

Humor and sadness weave in and out. Lots of Emily Dickinson references so if you like her poetry, you should really enjoy this book because it is clear the author is a fan.

The characters are believable but where I think Huntley really shines is making the various relationships realistic and honest - friends, rivals, sisters, boyfriend/girlfriend, parent/child.

This is paranormal, technically, but not in the usual sense.

Yes, you're reading about her as a ghost, but his is a story about Maddy's life and how she comes to understand herself and the people around her, with the side note of finding out the mystery of how she died. There's no woo-woo, creepy, haunting kind of stuff.

The author does put in life messages about, the afterlife and how you should live and enjoy your life when you are alive, but all that doesn't come in until the very end so it doesn't bog down the story and it isn't heavy handed. I thought the ending fell a bit flat but it wasn't a high energy kind of book anyway, and it didn't detract from my overall enjoyment.

While I wouldn't call it fantastic, I liked and recommend The EverAfter. There isn't a big time commitment- I finished it in a couple hours - so it's a fast read if not fast paced. The story weaves and lingers in a good way. If you have a short block of time and would like to finish an interesting and thought provoking book, give The EverAfter a whirl.

The Cover: I know this is a common style these days but I think it's beautiful.

First Line: I’m dead. Not my-parents-told-me-to-be-home-by-twelve-and-it’s-two-o’clock-now dead. Just dead. Literally. I think.Fabulous first line! Great voice. I like the character immediately and am interested to read more. Well done Ms Huntley!

I initially wanted to read this book because of the cover. It caught my eye and after you review I still really want to read it. I haven't picked it up yet but I definitely will be. I prefer the Everafter, it just make it sound much more interesting. Thanks for the review!

The cover is lovely. However, I wonder why there have been so many books written after a person dies lately? That seems to be an unusual technique. Admittedly, I haven't read any of them, but the idea seems odd to me.

I got this book not too long ago and have been meaning to read it but just haven't got to it yet. I'm glad you recommend it and I have to admit the cover is what got me to pick it up in the first place. And the first line is rather awesome.

I just read this one, and enjoyed it. Like you said, it's a fast read and a good book. I think I prefer The After, although it came out at a similar time to After by Amy Efaw; maybe that's why they changed it.

Disney World yay i work there (haha). On a more serious note I actually prefer "The After". "The EverAfter" kind of reminds me of that Drew Barrymore movie. But the cover is gorgeous I totally agree. N I love that first line it is hilarious n apparently very fitting. Thx for another great review. I'll have to check it out

This book sound so weird, yet totally cool. I love the cover as well and the first sentence is fantastic.I like "The EverAfter" much better than "The After" because "after" means "ass" in a formal way in my native language :P

I like the sound of the EverAfter. It makes it seem like there are endless possibilites... *shrugs* I really have no idea what the novel is about though, because I haven't read it. I would love to though. It's on my wishlist.

I definitely prefer The Everafter over just The After and I have to agree with you about the cover. It is becoming a common style, but I still find them all gorgeous. Thanks for the great review. I'll keep the pace and jumpiness in mind when I read it.

It sounds really original. I really liked how you added the first line. It's always fun to see how the writer plans to grab your attention. The cover is really stunning. I'm sure i'm not the first to say that.

Ohhhh. I had this mixed up with The Lovely Bones, the whole sees-objects-from-her-life thing. Y'know, in the preview she sees the bottled ship her dad smashes? I'm glad that's been cleared up!I like the final title better than the ACR title, I think. Although The After has a more final ring to it, and death is pretty final. Okay, I changed my mind, I like The After better. :)Ni review! If I ever need something quick (and my library has it) I'll keep this mind. :)I'm gonna cut this off now. My comment is turning a sub-post.